Mia Turns 5!

Mia had so many birthday celebrations that she had a difficult time determining which one made her officially five.  She asked with each one, "Am I five now Mommy?"

Pre-school party smile:

Mom was not feeling terribly ambitious this year...

Mia got berry-oat muffins with colorless Olivias on toothpicks.  I'm sure her classmates were ecstatic.

Since Dad and Mia have birthdays that are just a week apart, they often meet in the middle to celebrate with family. Here they are just after making a wish over their melting ice-cream cake. Mia requested a "Frozen" (the movie) cake, but Dad requested an "Oreo" cake, so this was the compromise. No healthy shortcuts in this case...yikes! But yum! Mia's blow-out the candles with? To "go on a bear hunt."

"Checking" Great Gma R with her new doctor's kit:

Mia's official birthday was celebrated while we were in Utah for a summer trip.  

Her sole birthday request was to push June in the stroller...

Presents usually consist of art supplies and books, but she is ever gracious (so far):

Two-Year Interview

We can't get enough of this sweet, little voice.

Pascal Week, 2014

Saturday "Spring Treats" hunt (we have to do something unique from Grandmas) usually involves small garden tools and sandbox toys to counter-balance the load of candy received elsewhere.  This year, Mia could read the clues herself (kind of).  It was so fun to watch them run from place to place!

We have taken to dyeing our eggs with whatever we have on-hand.  This year, turmeric, spinach, and red cabbage (to make the blue).  They always turn out to be lovely!

Evidence that I am carrying on my Mom's tradition of sewing matchy Easter dresses.   

Loot from Gma K's

Dos Anos for June Bug

This sweet girl turned two in February (yes, I know it is now May and I am finally documenting it).

The moment either birthday girl emerges from her room is a big deal for me.  I love to shower them with attention as soon as they wake up.  My mom always decorated my door for me on my birthday and it was such a special tradition.

This sweet smile melts my heart every time!

June's lovely birthmother, Su, has sent a package all the way from Korea for each of June's birthdays.  She doesn't say a thing about it-  we just get a surprise package at the beginning of February filled with beautiful clothing.  June has since believed that every package that arrives comes from Su.  Here is June  showing off the darling things she received:

I have associated June with the grouchy lady bug for the past year (for a variety of reasons: she likes the book, she is really grouchy when she's tired, and she just reminds me of a little lady bug in general).  Luckily, 2 year olds are agreeable to any party theme that's suggested. 

I invested hours into her lop-sided cake, although you wouldn't know it from its appearance.

At least it was really tasty... and as is notorious of desserts at our house, relatively healthy.

We are so blessed to live close to grandparents and cousins.  

It makes for an automatic guest list and fun celebrations!

Mom is always a spaz about this part of the birthday (blowing out the candle).  Poor June tries to hug the cake during the song and gets frightened by Mom's response.

We love this sunshine of our lives!

Noel, 2013

As our family matures, we have been able to better establish rich holiday traditions.  It is my goal to fill the season with meaningful memories as opposed to a commercial gimme-gimme focus.

A new one that we added this year is the Journey to Bethlehem put on by several local faiths.  It is so cool to see the variety of backgrounds there come together by a common focus on Christ.

Here is the participating camel, my favorite part of the production.

Tree trimming:

Mia was terrified of the "grunchy green guy" while watching "The Grinch" with cousins (the Jim Carey version is gross, but we needed something that the older male cousins could appreciate).  

Dad and Mia used external sources to turn up the gingerbread-house design competition this year.  Note their Seussical landscaping in the finished product (on the right).  

That top-heavy marshmallow tree caused a lot of heart ache.

Mia decided that she wanted to see the Nutcracker ballet this year for her Christmas present.  Mom was a little reluctant about the attention span of her wiggly little body, but we made it through the entire production with only one declaration of "not again!" when the prince emerged on-stage for the final scene.

Our annual Coeur D'Alene cruise to the "north pole"

We tried a new type of Christmas cookie this year for Mia's school party: "peppermint buttons."  The girls were well-practiced at sneaking dough by the end of that night.  June patiently waited by the oven until each batch came out.

Here we are, dressed in our festive red velvet for Christmas Sunday

Getting into the spirit at Great-Gma R's on Christmas 'eve:

We were so lucky to have our always missed Utah cousins surprise the family for Christmas!

Times like this usually call for a dance party:

All is calm and bright at midnight

Testing out the new art supplies and puzzles:  

When Mia opened her fancy World Map puzzle, she skeptically said, "Umm...this one is at my school"

We had a frosty "white" but snowless Christmas day.  It was still lovely.

We pulled out the fancy crystal goblets at Gma K's in the evening, but Mia was a bit heavy-handed with hers despite countless warnings and nearly sliced her finger off when it shattered.  She was instructed to keep her hand elevated to slow the bleeding down in order for her parents to assess whether it warranted an ER visit.  She took her instructions to heart and wouldn't lower her poor hand for the rest of the night.  It did the trick... no emergency room Christmas to our relief!

Cute matching nightgowns from talented seamstress Gma K:

After the girls went to bed that night, Mom and Dad discovered that the girls' plasma cars from Gma & Gpa R have a 250 lbs weight limit.  

-isms of 2013

I have tried to keep track of the silly things that our girls say, but often tell myself, "I need to write that down..." and subsequently forget.  Here is a list of the Mia-isms and a few June-isms (spoken language is a relatively new development) from 2013 in order of occurrence: 

Mia-isms

After seeing a picture of mom & dad Running in Arizona- "you were running and Mia & June were eating corn-corns." (Kumquats)

Taking inventory of the three girls in the car- "we are all so beautiful. But not daddy. He's not pretty. He's a boy."

While reading a book where one matches an animal with the movement it makes, we had decided that a "caterpillar climbs". Mia said, "and a caterpillar flies too because it's a butterfly." Smarty! When we were deciding what a beetle does, Mom passed the word "swim" but Mia stopped me. "He swims when I put him in the toilet."

After seeing a Base jumping video on YouTube- " I want to do the jumping off the rocks all day long"

"lips"=chapstick, lip gloss, etc.

After finding the b-room door locked with Mia inside...and knocking til it opened:

"You do not lock mommy out of the b-room"

"But I needed some prisacies [privacy]!"

(Busying herself to look in the mirror and I notice that she has applied mascara...perfectly. Better than I can).

"I see you got into mommy's makeup"

"I look so beautiful."

"You are not allowed to get into my makeup without asking."

"What do you see?"

"You put my mascara on without asking."

"I don't see any. [I mean] it's not all over the place!"

In other words... Shouldn't I be awarded for my application skill?!

Mia said to mom, "we are matchers. you have brownskin chocolate freckles but not brownskin chocolate skin."

"I'm a bad guy to mommy."

"No you aren't. You are just learning how to be a listener."

"Well, I'm a bad guy to June and a good guy to you."

To Mom and Dad-"You are not special because you don't have brown skin chocolate. If someone is brownskin chocolate they are only special."

-What is your favorite food?

-White sauce (pointing to the salt).

-You mean salt?

-Yes, white salt is my favorite and tomatoes.

Mia really quiet in back seat:

-what are you thinking about Mia?

-I'm thinking about naughty things.

-what naughty things?

-ALL the naughty things.

Mia said that when her Bunny's last surviving ear falls off, he will become a boy.

"I'm hiding 'cause I don't want to smell your gum."

After helping to assemble our new picnic table in the back yard, Mia announced, 

"now we have an outside chicken!" Chicken=kitchen

Identifying herself: "I'm a hair girl and I look at pictures and videos on somebody's phone."

At REI: "I can get a bike because I don't poop or scratch my bum. I don't do things like that."

-can I watch Mermaid at gma k's house?

Mom: it's Sunday and Mermaid doesn't remind us of Jesus

-Oh! The daddy has a beard like Jesus! It's okay!

After asking what an astronaut is, Mia said, "oh! I wish I could do that!"

While dragging the garbage can down the driveway (one of her first times on her own) Mia shouts, "mom, do I look like a woman?!"

On the way to watch the magician at the library... "You and June can stay home. The guy will take really good care of me." Yikes!

Helping mom pick out an outfit (for mom):

"Hmm. Okay (in a patronizing voice), I will be your tiny mommy because I'm tiny."

"Plants like to drink orange juice and rain."

The Grouchy Lady Bug by Eric Carle is Mia's recent favorite. She calls it "The Grunchy, Grunchy Lady Bug."

While swimming in the lake, Mia moves up to Daddy with one hand in the air and tries to push him over with the other one. "Let's play baptized Daddy. I'm going to Baptize you!"

Looking at an ant hill..."oh how I love the antses!"

dad was speaking Spanish to himself while planting some lavenders. "Dad, the plants don't spanish Spanish."

After dad squeezed Junes belly and caused her to produced some noisy gas, Mia declared, "June had a bum burp!"

After having some assistance pottying outside and making quite a scene, Mia exclaimed, "that. Was. Amazing!"

"My friend Brody said 'you have a nice hair' and I said, 'it's a four ponies.' And then I said again, 'my mommy made them.'"

Dad said to Mom: "You know what I'd really like for Christmas if we had the resources?"

Mia interjected: "What is it? Footie jammies?"

In reference to the Grinch at the CDL Christmas cruise, and through tears: "He is NOT my favorite crunchy guy!"

"Junie, I'm gonna take you to Panda Bear and take you in the wagon.  I'm not gonna go on the road- We will go on the walk-side!  We will go to Albertson's and then go to Panda Bear. I'm being the mommy."

(Examples of random, semi-obnoxious commenting stage)

Mom-  "Wow, Mia! You worked hard on those puzzles!  Great job!"

Mia- "Well...you are just a wiseman that they saw!"

Mom- ???

Hand over mouth and wide-eyed: "He just said the password" (Mia's key term for "naughty words"- hate, stupid, etc.) Now times this phrase by a million and you will have Mia's weekly dialogue.

-Daddy, push your tummy out like a baby.

-Nah.

-Just try.

-Nope.

-Daddy, YOU ALWAYS NEED TO TRY THINGS ONE TIME!"

"Small-eh-show" = Marshmallow

June-isms

June-isms

After bumping her head, pats it and attempts to say "tough cookie" -15mos.

June blew us away today when I was counting the 12 girls in the Madeline book. I began counting, "one" and June said "two!" Then I said "three" and she said "four" and so on until 10!!! I have never directly taught her this and have no idea where she picked it up at this age! -18 mos

While snuggling June before her nap, she grabbed my chin and said, "chin up!" She had seen me do that to David a week earlier when he was being grumpy! -18mos

June has the SWEETEST singing voice and is quick to sing along anything... particularly primary song as she falls asleep. I Am a Child of God is a favorite. -20mos

June's language is very advanced with three word utterances, regular past tense, -ing, and huge variety of vocab-20mos

June has always been compassionate. She will stop crying of someone else is crying in order to comfort them. Mia has a cold right now, and every time Mia coughs, June asks, "you okay?"  It melts my heart.

calls herself  "Doonie" (Junie) -20mos

While pretending to eat Junes cheeks for lunch, she stopped giggling and asked..."tasty?"-21mos

In the possessive stage.  We often hear, "No, Mia, that MINES!"

June enjoys the novelty of finding things that are "hiding" and revels in the announcement, "Deh it is!"

June is a picky eater, but is extra polite about it and declines with a "No Kank-oo!"

Animal Sounds- 19 mos.

Body Parts-21 mos.